His dedication to perfection was inspired by his mother, whom he calls his "hero." While attending his NFL games, his mother would get so nervous to the point that she would rarely take her seat and instead watched the game in the concourse on television, nervously walking around and pacing.
Not much has changed since the time when Martin was in pads. Waiting for her son's announcement on Saturday afternoon, Martin's mother was back to her nervous ways again, just like during her son's storied career.
"She would meet me after the game in the tunnel," Martin recalls of his mother's inability to watch him from her seat in the stadium.
"It's funny, even now, six years removed, that hasn't changed. She went in the kitchen and my assistant, Alexandra, took her shoes because my mother was about to walk out in the hall because she was too nervous to watch the Hall of Fame